Interesting piece on innovation..

By Godin: Source: http://hbr.org/2010/11/column-to-win-create-whats-scarce/ar

Excerpts below:

Marketers like to work on the demand side—take what’s in demand, make it cheaper, run a lot of ads, make a profit. If you can increase demand for what you already make, a lot of problems take care of themselves. It’s the promise of the typical marketing organization: Give us money, and we’ll increase demand.
There’s an overlooked alternative, though. If you can offer a scarce and coveted good or service that others can’t, you win. What is both scarce and in demand? Things that are difficult: difficult to conceive, to convey, to make. Sometimes difficult even, at first, to sell—maybe an unpopular idea or a product that’s ahead of its time. In fact, just about the only thing that is not available in unlimited supply in an ever more efficient, connected world is the product of difficult work.
The only refuge from the race to the bottom? Difficult work. Your only alternative is to create something scarce, something valuable, something that people will pay more for.
What’s difficult? Creating beauty is difficult, whether it’s the tangible beauty of a brilliant innovation or the intangible essence of exceptional leadership. Beauty exists in an elegant and novel approach to a problem.

People who can do difficult work will always be in demand. And yet our default is to do the easy work, busywork, work that requires activity, not real effort or guts. That’s true of individuals, and it’s true of companies.No longer. The world will belong to those who create something scarce, not something cheap. The race to the top has just begun.

Pub Review: WTF Khar

In my effort to revive pubbing days, I pledge to visit a new pub in Mumbai every fortnight. :)
The first one I went to was a "low-cost" joint named WTF (off SV Road, Khar). Its a good VFM joint with pub style oily snacks and popular music. There are TVs around to catch live sport. Like most places in Mumbai, it gathers steam only after 9'o clock on weekends (no early evening drinking here)... decor etc is basic and good. It works fully well for the costs. The only downer (& a big one)- no draught beer

What do you miss when you dont have a regular job!?

Of course the salary & all the unnecessary bhaav from various stakeholders!!:) :(
But some other stuff too:
1. Endless auto supply of mineral water bottles which help you  not de-hydrate
2. The controlled spread out central air conditioner as opposed to the jarring ones at home
3. Small stuff which can be done easy (photocopies, couriers !!?)
4. Bitching coffee sessions
Thinking thinking.. would be more..

I dont get this CWG thing at all !!

Some of the upper middle class reactions to the CWG crisis has been weird and/or stupid- varies from person to person. Why do I think so?

1. Reaction to corruption: We all do know that corruption is something that exists & we live with it. Even in stuff as critical as defense aircraft deals, there exists corruption & sub-standard deals ! Any reason the same shouldnt be there in something as non-essential or non-critical as a CWG? There's nothing to crib about in money having been siphoned out using these games as a front. It is part of the deal for an economy like ours
2. Delays/last mile execution hitches: Again, in doing something this large scale, there will be hitches. We will have more than a developed country would have. It works that way coz it is that way. We cant expect an India to execute this kind of infra like say a USA. Not yet anyways...Blowing up every small detail on national media is just plain vanilla stupid
3. Context: Lastly, the CWG is a bygone concept. If these were the Olympics or even say something like  a WC Hockey, the powers-that-be would have gotten involved earlier and ensured smoother execution. Our media doesnt have much else to report now and with every news of a snake or filth capturing national middle-class attention, they are loving increased TRPs. Some good journos in the HT have pointed how the Manchester & Melbourne editions had athletes staying in hostels ! even 8 a room..
And we dont need to make this into a "Indian image" or "India cant execute" kind of a thing. Its not really the "failure" of a nation if there are issues. Its more like a failure of that management team (whatever be the reasons, ranging from corruption to bureaucracy to inefficiency).

Interesting blog post

I have appended some blogs from VCs that I read often on the right side of this blogspot (look to the right). An interesting post today on www.bothsidesofthetable.com...Give it a read.. ..A bit of a "gyaan" piece, but still nice..

The value of the network

It would be interesting to discover the value of the "network" in a startup. More than value, the question is - what kind of network helps. & I am discovering some stuff here. Lemme tell what kind of a network would help a wannabe "starter":
1. People with a network of very small designers, CAs, lawyers, company secretaries etc
2. Those with knowledge of pricing done by such smaller agencies
3. Those with the intent / desire to spend an hour a week on the idea at hand
& plus if you are not from a tech background, someone with understanding of tech pricing & products. Now, very less of the network you have if you are a typical MBA esp with banking/fin serv experience would be of this type.
Its not a crib session but really a direction on the kind of network one must try & build before making a decision to start something. I actually did build the odd contact in this direction like for e.g. a secretarial firm who I now use for incorporation etc. But I do realise that I could have done much much more in this direction as a preparation before starting out.
Trying now to tackle atleast the problem of the lack of cross functional expertise by "thinking" of bringing in such guys as advisors to the venture. Will see if & how that works out..

MVP & more..

Lots of theory on MVP (Minimum Viable Product) & the Lean Startup in the US of A. Interesting theories around pivoting - which is the process of a startup creating a prototype and then adapting based on market responses.
But much of them focusing on tech/web startups. Not so many on the normal offline-online kind of combination which prevails in our parts of the world.
In any event, the theorized versions of the MVP are quite intriguing. There are several key questions around this concept of MVP. But I am experiencing the below 2 as most critical:
1. Determining how much is the minimum from a product design perspective
2. Determining the pricing
Now, Q No.1 is well answered and the answer is kinda common whether tech or non-tech. It should largely be the intersection set of what the customer wants and how much you can deliver within your proposed outlay (whether self funded bootstrapped or investor funded) & available talent.
Q No. 2 though is radically different for tech. Esp the new age ones. Many of the iconic sites like FB, twitter & the less iconic ones like simple photo sharing ones etc have the liberty to launch "limited period free" products (being subscription businesses). Plus they have the ability to launch free & paid-premium services.
However, this is much more complex in a non e-business- the issues being:
1. Products are typically one shot consumption products. You gotta sell the product on Day 1
2. If you dont price at all , measuring test success is difficult
3. In case you price the product (& if there are certain product issues or you substantially change the product later), there may be customer issues
Solutions ?
1. Handling the initial customers very closely via email etc & promising to provide them any updates on the site in the next 12 months for free? (very tedious process-wise.............)
2. Maybe pricing at ZERO for say first 25 customers but gauging demand from web hits, requests from more customers, engagement of those who hav bought for zero etc
3. Charging a minimal cost & then combining it with No.2 above?
Interesting, nevertheless....

Welcome to BetterLesson

Welcome to BetterLesson: "Receive real recognition for high-quality lessons"

And another one...Interesting again..

University of the People – The world’s first tuition free online university

University of the People – The world’s first tuition free online university

Very interesting concept...free education using the web.

The Perils of...

This is the season for me defining perils ! Thats what I am confronting ever so often. Possibly in some time, I may have recommendations, but right now, I am only defining perils.

One of the dangers of having worked in a pure corporate fin services background is that you "actually do" very less. Time is spent largely on analysis (less) and presenting it in various formats (more). You do get a great top view of businesses , strategy, scalability blah blah. Further you get to structure/strip/design fin products like loans, mezz, equity etc. But these largely require understanding of market pricing & regulations..only...

But thats kinda very different from having to decide on the logo, the brand name, the brand design, product notes, printers, web designs & so on... Most of these kind of things is what one has tackle first up. Its almost like chalk & cheese, I guess. The big dilemmas then are about whether the logo is good, whether you paid too much or too less for it & you dont have a frame of reference to figure these out.

What can I say..interesting.............for now..........

Variables going into deciding what to start..

What I used:
1. Surely no money gonna come from anyone else. Hence, how much money can you put down & can the proposed plan come to any kind of shape and size in that money?
2. Given Point No.1, is there some kind of novelty in the product? If you cant commit reasonable funds, then what is unique about what you are doing?
3. Is that innovation a product innovation, tech innovation or a biz model innovation? Large number of product innovations these days are tech.
4. Do you have the requisite knowledge to take the product to a soft launch?

Groklaw - Here's Bilski: It's Affirmed, But . . .No Decision on Software Patentability - Updated

Groklaw - Here's Bilski: It's Affirmed, But . . .No Decision on Software Patentability - Updated: "patentability"

Domain registration..

Its a bit (thats it?) silly trying something on your own at times. One of my theories (& I have no idea if it is right or no) is to obtain little (even tiny) wins to gain momentum. Similarly, I also like the odd not-over-researched decision - all in the interest of gaining momentum. Time will tell whether it is the right thing to do. But I am surely using it as a way to make calls. Having given all this preview, today is the day I blocked my domain name on net4 domains. Hopefully, the stuff to be sold on the domain will do much better than I hope !:) More on the service levels from net4 as I figure out.

Some of the perils..

Its kinda tough to decide who to outsource work to when you are a "nothing". Its one of those times you lament not having any concrete skill (e.g. web designing). There typically tend to be varieties of people you can outsource to:

1. Those who are damn good & dont even wanna talk to you

2. Those who are quite bad & are keen for your little 20k contract !(INR 20k that is ..)

3. Those who are ok & yet see value in your tiny contract

You hope to be able to find the 3rd kind , but, really, there is no way to tell. I guess mistakes will be made in this..If & when I realise how to figure this one, will surely write !

The break !:)

The break is interesting- chutney bread and some water and England v Bangladesh Day 5. Good to see the Bangla tigers stretching the hosts in a Lords test in May. On that , its interesting to note how much pitches have changed even in England. Not too much pace & importantly, very less movement for the seamers. The Bangladeshi No.10 seems to be defending the ball rather easily. Ok- only 15 more mins of the break. Dont overdo it..

What was I thinking!?:)

Starting a new phase today. Its an effort to remind yourself that the learning is gonna be good and useful. The lack of direct correlation between effort and reward (reward is tending towards zero !!:) makes it difficult to keep at it. But that is the idea, I guess..

Interesting IPL observations..

1) Its weird to see the extra passion & cheering & shouting & celebrations among some traditionally calmer players like say Sachin & Kumble. Is it the format or the captaincy? No clue. Love MSD- come whatever, the reactions are always so so calm & brilliant.
2) Nehra yet to play is bad news for Team India. Some decent new "fast" bowling talent I picked-
#i) Umesh Yadav from DD
#ii) Abu Nechim from MI- bowled between 140-145 km/h
Sadly neither of these guys seemed to swing it or have actions which suggest they can swing it. But enough good things to work with for Eric Simmons.
3) I somehow am not sharing the optimism around Yusuf Pathan- he has got 75%+ of his runs against spinners plus Sathish (Mumbai Indians dibbly dobbler). Yusuf clearly has a weakness against short-pitched bowling (a weakness far greater than Raina or any of the other Indian players) and hence, I cant see how he can even be a moderate success consistently for India. Will still keep him in the T20 team only (& just about ahead of Uthappa)
4) I am not sure about this but I dont think there too much of a difference between average scores of teams in the first 6 & last 4 overs. Wonder if the larger & hence critical difference (incremental) between the teams is the performance between Over No. 7 & 16. I dont have a starting hypothesis. Maybe 12th man can analyse this one !:)

NGO for clothes

I have always looked for an NGO where I can give my many old clothes. Seem to have found one http://www.goonj.org.

Interesting..

IPL is getting to be really a mass product.
I for example have no real team I support or cheer for with great passion and I know several pals who are in a similar position. Of course I'd back the Mumbai Indians marginally more due to Sachin's presence (only) but only marginally more than say a Delhi team with Sehwag.
This despite the fact that I have over the years supported really weird "things" ranging from Boris Becker to Roger Milla !
Would be interesting to do a survey on region based support etc

Road ahead looks difficult

Its one thing to take a difficult road. Its another thing to have no clue about how to navigate around it. Time will tell !

Guess we will all evolve..

Even for a sports freak like me, its been shocking to note the following for the IPL. Watch IPL, news IPL, MTV IPL, bet IPL and then talk about all of the above rest of the time. Guess it tells me that we need to get on and do more stuff like trekking, travelling, social service etc as opposed to just sitting and making comments on those playing a game and being well-paid to do it !:)

Dravid..from cricinfo.com

Nice piece from Siddartha Vaidyanathan on cricinfo on Dravid's super knock at Jamaica on a minefield. I remember watching it..http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/450892.html

IPL3

IPL has this weird addictive feel about it. A combination of slick marketing and very evenly matched teams , i guess. Every game gets so close.
Team owners though need to think hard about the manner in which they incentivize some of the bigger names & the foreign players. For some of the foreign names, this kind of monies is so high that even 2-3 years is good enough. I got that feeling when I saw AB De Villiers get run out with his bat in the air. I doubt he will ever get out that way when playing for SA.
Its critical that owners put in place a meaty variable pay plan - doesnt help when the IPL takes out some of the player compensation. But anyways..

Atleast he will try..

Cant control ability, potential or results..but can only try..& that he is gonna soon..hope he doesnt get it all wrong..:( :)

Sachin Sachin..

Sachin just dedicated his 200 to me ..people like me .."Who have stood by him for the past 20 years through ups and down".. & that I have done...
I was at the Chepauk clapping that masterpiece when he got out vs Pak for 136 on a humid dirty day@ Chennai
Unlike all those timepass watchers who kept bothering about him getting out so close to a win as opposed to blaming the other 5 jokers who got out for 15-odd runs. He has played in all conditions and against all attacks unlike that dog Ponting who plays most of his big knocks at home and has never played well in India. Lara's hit & miss approach helped him play the odd blockbuster but Sachin has easily caught up now on that count with many many matchwinning knocks.
Even if he didnt, I dont care ...He's the best that is , that was & that ever will be.
"Sachin Sachin Sachin !
Salute Salute Salute!
Sach is life !"

Will he ? Wont he ?

For the umpteenth time, he has set a date..March 5! Will he or wont he?

Ray's Pizza

Thought this place is tops. Tucked behind the Nature's Basket outlet on Hill Road (opposite the legendary St.Stanislaus-my school), you wouldnt believe how they have managed to make it a nice & quite place- kind of cut off from the hustle and bustle of Hill Road. It has an open air and an AC section. The AC portion would be good for summer !:)
The place has a Pizzeria association & hence, the a good range of pizzas including just the slice. In addition, there are burgers , salads and the normal sides. I had the chicken burger, which was juicy and quite liked it. No alcohol license, hence make-do with Cokes/Iced teas. Specific yet limited coffee and dessert menu, which I didnt try. Pricing is all good at around 200-odd for the burger.
Strongly recommended.

Aer@the Four Seasons..over-rated?

Great idea and good place for a drink with office folks/clients etc not worth the over-hype.
Open-air and on the 32nd floor of the Four Seasons (right next to the slums of Parel:)), Aer promises to be brillliant on a breezy, not-hot or even slightly rainy evenings. Its got a decent bar and good cocktails. Not so sure about the food. Its dam small and tends to get too crowded taking away from the "open-air" experience (I feel). Of course, steeply priced (Cocktail for 650 bucks types) as you would expect at the 4S.
Overall, good to go at times..definitely , a great place for taking clients etc out.

Battle Royale @ the Eden

Exactly why I luv test cricket. It was amazing to see how, on Day 1 the South Africans crumbled from 200-odd for 3 , so so similar to 2001-Aus. Bhajji's chutzpah and not great technique from the South Africans helped him more than his skills. What was awesome to see VVS flow, Sachin play steadily , Dhoni ugly yet vv effective & Viru sublime.
On Day 3 when India came out 5-down, VVS started the day with some silkly flicks off Steyn & Harris. Made my day. Kya hoga when these guys all retire??

Awesome SA & Steyn..but..

We are 1-0 down. But as usual, too much fuss around our loss. I mean we did play with a 2nd string batting line-up and they did reasonably well (Africans bowled beautifully). The bowling has problems and has always had them:
1. The pace bowlers rely on seam and swing , not pace. We won our last series in England. When we went to Australia, we won at Perth (on the fastest track) and lost at Melbourne (on a slow pitch). We won in Jo'burg when Sreesanth took a 5-for. My theory is that our pacers do very well on helpful tracks and our hi-quality batters do a decent job & hence, better results. On tracks like Nagpur, our pacers cant break through due to lack of speed and the spinners...
2. .......well, they suck ! Maybe Mishra can get better with experience but I dont know. I am a fan of Bhajji for his chutzpah, not his skills. Hes a great one day or T20 bowler, but his flat, fast deliveries are no good on most pitches. Am not even bothering checking his test figures, but I am sure they are not flattering outside India. He has rarely bowled us to a win (barring the odd game in NZ & WI) and off late, accuracy is a big issue with him. And no flight or guile from a spinner is sad to see. Methinks Ramesh Powar would still today be a much much better choice. Alas..
Otherwise, its great to see nice, aggressive test cricket. Winning-losing is part of any game, but hope for a better battle at the Eden !

Save our tiger

By my own confession, I am not a wildlife or advenure freak. Late last year, I had gone down to Ranthanbhore. I loved the peace of the jungle and going on the tiger trail. Somehow, I also realized the criticality of these "save your tiger" promotions. In fact, I was pretty cross with few of the public out there in the jungle for chucking stuff here and there and cracking stupid jokes while on the tiger trail.
I actually dont how these Aircel save your tiger type initiatives help but its worth joining in case they do. I have registered on it & urge everyone to do so @ http://www.saveourtigers.com.

LCCs and segmentation

Everytime I take one of our low cost airlines (LCCs), I do have some funny experience or other. Tend to promise never to use them again, but end up doing so at times (largely for the scheduling).
I have noticed that all the marketing gyaan learnt on segmentation though comes true on these. You find a pattern on the kind of passengers and there are a few varieties who are always there:
1. The teenager travelling for the 1st or 2nd time , dressed in their very best (generally a guy with sunglasses on)
2. The middle-aged lady who sits at the emergency exit but will refuse to part with her dear luggage on the lap and will argue with the air hostess
3. Aggressive middle-aged men cribbing about the AC , the flight delay and/or the food
4. Large (read:obese) businessmen / small time promoters chomping away at whatever food they can get
5. Scared elderly passengers who have just come to the flight directly from the closest temple
Its funny that the 4-5 flights I have done have generally had the above profile. I must hasten to add that these LCCs are doing a great job..whats more, some of them are profitable too !!:)

Hyderabad

Was in Hyd last week. Whenever I am there, it strikes as being the very essence of our growth story. It used to be a sleepy city (many will argue, it still is :)) famous for the biryani. But a combination of the IT/ITES boom , some ambitious(& mostly honest) entrepreneurs & Chandrababu Naidu has given the city a major fillip over the last decade. Its got a lot of youngsters working out of the large office complexes , eating at restaurants, buying homes and spurring consumer businesses. A shiny new airport at par with the best in the world greets you on arrival and an awesome elevated 11 km expressway moves you into the city (Is Mumbai listening?).
And despite all of this, you have affordable real estate to buy & live in (relative to Mumbai, of course). Now only if they take quick decisions around Telengana etc and get on with development as opposed to wasting time...

Am in the wrong job..Much better at picking cricket talent !

I have been getting it right big time on my picks. I had picked A Mithun for the Indian team (largely based on press reports & cricinfo records analysis) and in one of my earliest posts, written about Travis Birt (after watching a domestic Aussie match). Mithun has now been picked for the India Test team and Birt for the Aussie T20 team. Not bad going !

Why I dont like the IPL..

Professional sport is one of those (last few) things left, which is like a guy thing . Watching a good game with the right company, critiquing the commentary and game strategy, debating hazaar statistics and of course, consuming beer, adds up to make it that kind of an event.
What the IPL has done (though good for its coffers) is to make cricket a complete entertainment package with no respect for any of the nuances . So, you have people who have never seen cricket before decide to support the Rajasthan Royals- Why? Coz Shilpa Shetty owns the team and a smoking tubby Shane Warne is charismatic. All the right reasons, as you can see. Plus of course, Mandira Bedi for commentary. This year, the ads suggest there is something special being planned for kids during the coverage. Oh my God!!
I am not v sure, but I think the EPL isnt some kind of a family mela. That may be because soccer is a contact sport..who knows ! Also, it hasnt been marketed in this kind of a manner with movie stars & the type being team owners etc etc. Tragedy is that every year, the IPL only gets more and more away from the clutches and understanding of a hardcore cricket or sports geek.
All the above are part of the reason why you wouldnt know who has been the top scorer in the 2 IPL editions, which batter has been the game changer, which bowler has best eco rates, whats the key strategy element in a T20 and so on.....
I may still watch it coz it is telecast at a time when I may otherwise be watching some meaningless news program on CNN or CNBC..But surely not enjoying it too much ...

Facebook cant survive for too long, can it?

Facebook has evolved a fair bit
It initially started off as a photo sharing/commenting tool started by Zuckerberg (another Harvad Univ grad). Story goes he was dumped by some girl & created this coz he wanted to get her off his mind. It became like an online student directory for Harvard with photos etc. It gradually spread and went on to add more colleges , schools and then went on to become the soc networking tool that it is today.
In India, orkut had a headstart-it largely helped people get in touch with long lost friends, school mates etc. But as orkut stagnated, facebook became all of this plus an exciting front-end allowing various things like status updates & several custom apps. The viral nature of social netowrking caught on much more with facebook and it kept adding users. Today, I guess college kids types use it for the apps etc whilst the older bunch use it to keep others informed on what they r upto (a bit of a show-off site from time to time !!"Awesome view frm the top of the Himalayas types!":))
What next? I get the feeling that they are looking to:
1. Charge for membership and/or
2. Create a forum where transactions happen on facebook (friends getting togethter and doing stuff etc etc)
Am not sure either of the above will ever become very huge or popular. Creating a network and then milking it for transactions seems intiutive. The issue is that most people in this kind of a network are in the 3rd or 4th degree!! Your 1st or 2nd degree network are the ones with whom you will make plans, transactions etc and for that you wont need facebook.com.
My take is:
1. It will remain an average networking site
2. People will get fed up of putting up global, glowing status updates & pics and move on or reduce their usage
3. Transactions etc will not really take off
4. The site will stagnate by 2015
Lets see...Could be proven wrong but unlikely !:)

The insignificant No.11 or wat?

10 players of the Indian test squad more or less pick themselves . These 10 players are the Top 5 batsmen+Yuvraj (:) ) + MSD+ Zak+ Ishant + Bhajji. (just for the moment, leave the fact that Ishant was dropped for Sreesanth in the home series v SL)
That leaves us with 1 slot. This goes to a seamer in overseas games and typically a 2nd spinner in sub-continental conditions. And this is the slot we ping-pong with. Sreesanth's ok-ok form off late means he is probably the 3rd seamer (to be used overseas). But in the subcontinent games, its (as of now) between Mishra & Ojha (&how). Check the below trail of our last few series:
Ind v Aus (in India in Oct08)- Mishra made debut & was awesome
Ind v Eng (in India in late08)- Mishra continued & was good , if not spectacular
Ind v NZ (in NZ in early 09)- No spinner needed
Ind v SL (in Ind in late 09)- Suddenly, Mishra is dropped after an ordinary 1st test on a batting beauty & Ojha is in. Ojha does a good job
Ind v Bangla (in Bangla in 2010)-
1st test- Mishra is in & Ojha is out. Mishra doesnt bowl too well, but takes a 7-for in the match & we win the match (apparently, captain Sehwag's call)
2nd test- Ojha is in & Mishra is out !!! (back to captain MSD & his call)
I cant fathom why we play around with that marginal 4th bowler instead of giving 1 person a good run and loads of confidence. It usually shows also when we struggle to pick up the last 3-4 wickets.

Wierdos in the gym

All of us who go to these gyms (regularly or irregularly) wouldnt have missed several strange categories of people in there:
1. The struggling amateur- This is the guy who has just joined the gym but is clearly not cut out for it. He spends more time drinking water and walking around the gym than working out. When he works out , he typically gets the angles and body postures wrong.
2. The irritating floor trainer/s- The personal trainers are typically good but the floor trainers are a massive pain. The funniest thing I find about them is that Trainer No.1 may come and say that "Adjust your seat to position.4" . You would do so and continue exercising and then suddenly, Trainer No.2 will come & say "Too high- reduce to positon.3" . Damn bugging , especially for the struggling amateur.
3. The noisy muscleman- These are those Salman Khan varieties. Every gym needs them to be authentic. But , the loud grunt while lifting some 150 kilos is just unbearable and not done.
4. The treadmill hunters- 70% of the people come to the gym to just run up and down on the treadmill (i have never understood why). Typically, in a city like Mumbai, the treadmillls are always occupied. So- you have these guys who come up to you and ask you - "Aur kitna time??"
5. The pushy Mumbai local train types- These are two types of these:
i. Chappies who do an exercise and then leave their towel on the equipment. The towel indicates that they are gonna come back soon and that the equipment is "reserved" for them
ii. Folks who wanna finish off their routines first and so, will literally stand on your head whilst you are exercising to ensure that they can go next.
6. The sleeper abs- These guys get onto the abs trainer at the end of their routine. They are typically very tired, but to reduce that fat paunch, tend to (try &) do a lot of crunches. And invariably they lie down on the equipment and take "v long" breaks with their eyes closed between their sets.
Are they more? Maybe, the dainty lady , the elderly gentleman and so on...But the above were the top 6 that came to my mind. Happy gymming.

Sunny Gavaskar

Taking off from one of the comments on the blog on Sunny Gavaskar, thought i will put down my thoughts on the man.
Lemme start off by saying that he is an absolute icon- be it the 774 runs in a debut series vs. WI or staging a walkout on a wrong umpiring decision in Australia- he has in many ways been a pioneer. Awesome batting technique against spin and pace, I dont think concerns around his selfishness, conservative captaincy, blah blah are too much to bother about.
On his commentary though, there are 2 standard features, which are well, worth laughing about as well as things he should maybe avoid:
1. Tendulkar Worship - He can say no wrong about Sachin. Forget wrong, he can only praise him. In one of the recent ODIs vs. Sri Lanka , Sachin took a dolly of a catch in the final overs of a close chase. Gavaskar went on & on praising Sachin whereas the position of the game at the time may have merited a tad more mention ! :) Again- this is not blame but just an observation. I am no one to criticize Sachin worshippers- being the biggest one myself.
2. Aussie/Eng/SA bashing- We all love a bit of bashing of the firang cricketers and administrators. But Sunny does it almost blindly each and every time. I think I agree with the points he makes , but putting it more mildly and discreetly may drive home the point better. e.g. the Ponting fracas ! But then he is Sunny Gavaskar & probably is right :)
As Lord Relator said in the great calypso:
"It was Gavaskar
The real master
Just like a wall
We couldn't out Gavaskar at all
Not at all
You know the West Indies couldn't out Gavaskar at all."

Kam aur galat Insurance lene ki bimaari !

I aint no expert on personal investing. But I have always been amazed at the manner in which insurance policies are sold (& more importantly, bought!!) in India.
Quick step back to basics- Objective of insurance is to provide dependants with savings in the event of any untoward happening. THAT's IT.
This is achieved by the classic Term insurance policy- In such a policy, you pay a premium which covers you for anything untoward. If nothing like that happens, you dont get money back.
Then, there is the range of policies from endowment to money back to spurious unit-linked stuff in which you get various sums of money back in case the untoward event doesnt hapen.

Let me look at some premiums for these various kind of policies.
Assumptions: Age: 30
Sum insured: 1 cr
Tenor: 15 years
Premiums p.a.
Term - 30k
Endowment - 6.5 lac
Money Back- 10 lac
Unit Linked- Something devilish like 20 lac
I hope the numbers speak for themselves. In the effort of getting money back, you end up paying disproportionately large sums of money for the same sum insured.
Net-net, you end up under-insuring substantially. For a premium like 6.5 lac you could get much much much more sum insured cover in a term policy . This is a big worry in case something untoward happens (which is why you buy insurance). To achieve investment gains, there are many other products from equities to MFs to real estate to what not- get investing gains from those, not from insurance.
Of course, the agent will sell the costlier ones since his / her commission is linked to the premiums. Please do not wrongly under-insure. If insurance, then go for the simple term insurance.

Aromas, Powai- review

Decided to check out a restaurant at Powai.
Got into this coffee shop-Aromas (no need for a map, its bang in the middle of the Hiranandani area)..Its the first outlet in India of an Aussie chain.
Great ambience (by which I mean, nice & lazy). The ACs werent working. The crowd included the normal Powai type mix of expats.
The menu is much more than a normal coffee shop - includes a range of pizzas & pastas besides various coffees, sandwiches & desserts.
I tried a pizza & some pasta- they were good without being spectatcular or v authentic. Service was prompt & good, prices generally in the 120-125 buck range per dish. Tried out a "pepper" cheesecake which again was nice.
All-in-all, good place to catch up with friends on an afternoon !Food alone is not worth going for but the ambience & service makes up for that !

Tam / Udipi Food @ Matunga

I am a big fan of nice veg tam food (& also the peppery non-veg chettinad too, though thats reserved for another post). This is on the veg food.
Matunga has this line of veg restaurants which are traditional (are they still?) and dam popular- Cafe Mysore, Cafe Madras , Rama Nayak-old & new, Mani's and so on..
I have always ended up eating at the Cafe Mysore though.
-Cafe Mysore is more udipi food in taste than tam
- The normal suspects- idlis, vadaa, dosa are of course there. I always start off with the rasam vadaa (a bowl containing rasam and vadaas)
- If breakfast, I tend to follow up with mysore masala butter dosa. (Do go for the butter version, for sure). The Udipi sambhars arent great, but its ok with the mysore masala dosa combi
- Lunch typically is a taali - like a plated meal with puris, subzi, rice, dal, rasam and a sweet
- I always end with pineapple sheera
- And a filter coffee for sure !!!! followed by the dry pan with cocount fillings (Wow)
My guess is the other restaurants in that are kinda similar - maybe more Tam in taste than Udipi. (will try them sometime soon)
Cost is never gonna be an issue with these places. Waiting time maybe there and finding parking if you are driving the car, is a pain.
All-in-all, great option for a nice breakfast or lunch ended by a great coffee.
One point of caution- these places have huge demand from the large Gujarati population in and around Matunga. This , in my view, has resulted in a gradual change in the menu and tastes & definitely takes away from the authentic South Indian taste..Point to worry, but nothing can be done about it. Every business, I guess, adapts to the tastes of the modal and most-paying customers ! :)

Someday , somewhere..

I have never been a fan of a restaurant biz model..of course, margins are typically huge. But, it takes money and time to build a brand, real estate is costly and most importantly, restaurant businesses are typically "fads" and thats the biggest risk.

But...
Someday, somewhere, I would wanna open a cafe (not a restaurant, but a cafe).

Where: City-center or a tourist area
Emphasis: On ambience and great food, but no fixed cusine type
Ambience: Cool, casual, nice music, glass facade, open feel, bright colors, loads of newspapers, a small micro-brewery
Cusine:Keep varying from week to week..some standard all-day items to always be around

Kabhi na kabhi...kahin na kahin...

The decline & demise of the Times..

I have been perpetually cribbing about the decline in quality of reporting in the Times of India..however, inertia means that I still get the ToI and ET every day ..

But weird campaigs like the latest launched Aman-Asha thingie leave me with no choice but to change.

Am waiting for the paperwala to come today so that I can shift to the HT + Mint combine..

Pakistan ..oh oh !

Nothing much to say on their batting collapse, is there? I just hope people in Pakistan dont come up with some match fixing theory which will hide the inadequacies of their team.

Just 2 points:
1. Winning in professional sport is so much about the confidence & knowing "how to win" as opposed to skills. This Aussie team proves that.
2. I wanna also pay tribute to the heavweights in the Indian Test Team who have enabled us to learn "how to win". In this, I include Sachin, Saurav, VVS & Dravid- Dravid being the best example, methinks. Remember the Adelaide test we won in 2004- we had around 225 to chase in the 4th innings and Dravid anchored that chase like a champion (just like Sachin did in the Chennai test vs. England, though Dravid's was earlier & hence, maybe better). If Dravid hadnt batted in that manner that day, we may also well have collapsed & stuggled to figure out "how to win"! Salute the WALL !

Abhimanyu Mithun..watch out for this name

As a typical cricket freak, i luv picking up players from the Ranji scene who I think may one day break into the next level. One of my earliest picks was a person named MS Dhoni, but no blogging then to prove that.


In keeping with that, Abhimanyu Mithun, 20-yr old pacer from Karnataka is my latest pick.

He made his Ranji debut this season and in 8 matches, has taken 38 wickets at an average of 25-odd. By newspaper accounts, he bowls in the region of 140 km/hr. These numbers have been achieved by him bowling mainly on what is an unhelpful Chinnaswamy Stadium track (where he also picked up a 4-for in the recent semi finals against a decent UP line-up). He also played in the IPL for the Royal Challengers and in the 3 games he played, Kumble gave him decent spells and put faith in him- which also gives me confidence.


Watch out for this name. I will track him & most importantly his pace (so that he doesnt go the normal way of our speedsters- quick only for the 1st season a la Munaf)


Source for data / pix- http://www.cricinfo.com/

Entrepreneurship & Risk Aversion

Very nice piece from Sanjeev Bikhchandani (founder: www.naukri.com) from his blog:
http://bikhchandani.blogspot.com/2009/05/entrepreneurs-are-risk-averse.html
Nicely detailed out..couldnt agree more !!!

Pakistan's day at the SCG & Ponting's weakness against the short ball :)

Pakistan had a field day at the SCG. You can check out the scores at http://www.cricinfo.com/ - I thought the day's play showed why Pakistan is a dangerously weird side:
1. Mohammed Asif bowled an awesome spell to take a 6-for. He has now taken 79 wickets in 15.5 tests at an average below 23. He never ever bowls about 132 km/h , yet is consistent and menacing. And of course, he has come back from a drug possession ban !!!!
2. Mohammed Sami, on the other hand, is an enigma. He is quick, can swing it and is very fit. Yet, in a career spanning 33 tests, his bowling average is above 50. He played in last test against India in 2007 and was surprisingly called back for this Aussie series. He even flirted with the ICL in the interim. As he showed today, he can be a handful with pace, bounce and movement. He is a decent No.8/9 bat too.
3. Their catching was awful in the Boxing Day test- prompting the commentators to even say that their catching in this test could be the difference ultimately. Today, be it Misbah or Faisal Iqbal in the slips or even Kamran behind the stumps, the catching was really good.
And Mr. Ricky Ponting got out for a duck..first ball to a bouncer. The second or third time this summer. Kenmar Roach from the Windies had given him a harrowing time with short balls. And now Sami gave him a first-baller. None of the esteemed Channel-9 team were talking about this. Had it been Sachin or VVS or Saurav, they would have all been up saying weakness against short ball etc etc. Ricky getting out to the short ball only proves what Sunny Gavaskar has been saying all the while- that all batsmen are vulnerable against good short-pitched bowling !

Pakistan find themselves in great position to force the game at the end of Day 1 at the SCG. Its damn tough to decide who to support (or not support) in a Pak-Aus series. That in itself is saying a lot about the Aussies !:)
All data source: www.cricinfo.com

Chetan Bhagat- ha ha..stop being funny!

Too cute by Chetan Bhagat on this entire 3-idiots issue. I cant even understand what the fuss is all about. Read on..

Lemme just quickly summarise the issue.
1. The closing credits of the movie says - "Based on the novel 5 point someone by Chetan Bhagat"..Yes, it does, I saw it !
2. Chetan Bhagat signed an agreement with the movie team for the above and also accepted consideration (money) for the adaptation of his book
3. Now, he claims that he should have been given more credit (read:opening credits) for his movie. Further, he claims his mother was in tears coz he wasnt in the opening credits when she saw the movie (advice: he should have told her b4 she saw the movie, methinks)
4. The media of course blew up the issue with no one bothering about legalities etc (as usual). Chetan cutely landed up on national TV making various "emotional" pleas, where there isnt any case at all. He is also saying that the movie is 70% adapted from his book etc etc- trust an ex I-banker to come up with a spurious number. These metrics are tough to come up with and surely should have been thought of before signing the agreement.

To come up with all this after he had signed agreements, accepted consideration, seen premieres etc etc, I can only think that he was taken aback by the scale of the movie's success and hence, wanted more mention (ahead of Abhijat Joshi, who has done a fabulous job).

Not only is Chetan wrong, he is also just using the media to create an unnecessary issue, trying to take away (& not succeeding :)) from the sheen of the movie's success!

Vir Sanghvi has written on this issue in the Sunday HT. The article will appear today evening on his blog (http://www.virsanghvi.com/). Vir has made points similar to the above and even mentions that HT has had unsavory experiences when Mr. Bhagat was writing for them. Vir though is critical of the movie team for their lack of grace in response. Fair point, but I am not sure I agree. I dont think the kind of rhetoric that Chetan indulged in, deserves any grace !!!!

Restaurant reviews: Tote & Salt Water Bandra

Tote:
Interesting concept once again from the Akerkar stable located at the race course (Yeah- no parking woes). Fusion menu with some neat options and good seating space outdoors too (especially for the 15-16 degree Mumbai winter)...I had some grilled meat & it was a tasty fusion with a north indian tandoori feel to it !! Had an awesome banana cake dessert...Very large menu..worth going but be sure to reserve a table..They have got these 8 pm & 10.30 pm sittings in the evenings, so, timings need to match !
Feel for prices: Normal premium pricing on drinks, each appetizer / entree / dessert costs in the region of Rs.350-450, the exquisite ones like tiger prawns in the range of Rs. 750-1,000...So, decide how much you wanna eat / drink & do your own math..
Verdict: Must Go

Salt Water Cafe (SWC):
Located at Bandra Reclamation (opposite the Barista), SWC offers a continental menu. I have always ended up trying the fish options especially the rawas prawn (yes) combi ! The pastas too are not bad and the menu contains a good list of sandwiches / burgers..Good place to chill out for a Saturday lunch ..Seating capacity isnt too high-again calls for reservations on the weekends ...The menu also isnt too large , so, thats a note of caution !
Feel for prices: Beer in the 250 buck range, cocktails between Rs.280-400, main course in the 300-400 buck range
Verdict: Must try once, the ambience will probably take you there more times !

Multiple Choice test for Internet Startups !!

Was shuffling through some VC blogs , when I caught this one ! Very interesting ..
http://nothingventurednothinggained.blogspot.com/2007/03/my-simple-multiple-choice-test-for.html

Travis Birt & the Aussie game !

Am sure most Indians hate the aussie cricket team !! Remember sledging them from the crowd at a T20 game at the CCI few years back !
But you have got to admire the quality of their game ! They have been doing ok in all versions of the game for the last 2 years with pretty much an average team (by their own standards). An answer may lie in their compact and competitive domestic structure (besides of course, their general love for sport).
Have been following the KFC (eeeks- wat a sponsor) T20 bash this year and the quality of cricket is quite staggering ...Saw Adam Voges take a spectacular catch for Western Australia (WA) vs Tasmania..and a chappie named Travis Birt play an aggressive knock for Tasmania. Watch out for these names..Voges has been in and around the Aussie team but Birt is my pick for a place sooner than later especially in T20.
Will still sledge & chase the Aussies out of India but for sure, there is a lesson for us to enhance our domestic structure..

Test Cricket...hmm...

I had an awesome end to 2009 ! I was on leave, yet didnt travel ! Spent time eating and watching some awesome test cricket...Every thing has its place in the world and I think those predicting the end of Test Cricket, seem to be doing so, in a year which has produced some of the best Test Cricket ever !!
You dont think so?? Sample this for the year !
1. The year started off with Australia thrashing South Africa in SA - in a kind of a revenge for their defeat in Aussie land! Before that we saw Graeme Smith being uinable to stave off defeat at the SCG despite batting with a broken hand
2. We saw an awesome Ashes series with most matches being very closely fought and we ended the year with great games between SA-Eng , Aus-Pak & before that NZ-Pak
3. As for India, we beat NZ in style in the beginning of the year ! Tragically, we didnt play too much test cricket this year !! And ended the year packing off SL at home.. The catching, fielding and bowling all comes good in the slower, less frenetic test matches !! And the batting has a rock star look to it !

Methinks test cricket will survive and thrive ! 20-20 style batting ensures results and excitement ! A few changes here and there like lights, weekend scheduling etc and test cricket will rock !